Mastering Pattern Recognition in the Opening
Pattern recognition is an important tool in modern chess, as it helps you to understand better the characteristics of a position. Particularly when you have been confronted with a surprise opening system played by your opponent, it helps when you can just
The biggest upset of the week was Bogdan Deac's victory with the black pieces against Maxime Vachier-Lagrave in the Superbet Chess Classic Tournament in Bucharest, and therefore it is the right time to look at the most recent developments in the Open Variation (5...Nxe4) of the Ruy Lopez.
The young Romanian player was under severe pressure, but showed great defensive skills. After repeating once, MVL decided to go for it by playing 25.g4! which generates new threats against the black king. Deac responded with the stubborn 25...b3!, but do you see what is wrong with the moves 25...Rae8 and 25...Kh8?
You can move the pieces on the live diagram!
Interestingly, the exact same line was repeated this week in another game between the young GMs Ter Sahakian and Sevian in a round robin in Armenia, so we will discuss that game as well to complete the update on the current status of this particular variation (9.Nbd2 & 12.exf6) in the Open Ruy Lopez.
The Scotch Gambit is a brazen yet utterly sound system for White who immediately opens up the position, by sacrificing a central pawn, in an attempt to assassinate the enemy king as quickly as possible.
Special attention will be paid to Intermediate Moves, Quiet Moves, Sacrifices on Empty Squares, Mating Patterns, Ignoring Opponents Threat, Calculation in Defence and Method of Comparison. Plus 50 interactive examples to test your knowledge.
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